Publish date: 28 November 2023
The International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) is annually observed on 3 December to promote the full and equal participation of persons with disabilities and to take action for the inclusion of persons with disabilities in all aspects of society and development.
Our Ability First Network have shared some information around disabilities and reasonable adjustments to mark the day.
What is a disability?
A disability is a condition that affects an individual’s ability to carry out normal day to day activities. It can be a mental and/or physical health condition. Disabilities can be visible or hidden and can last 12 months or longer, or be recurring. Some people like to use the term 'long term condition'.
Disability statistics
- 83% disabled people aquire their disability at a working age
- 53.6% working age disabled people are in employment, compared to 81.7% working age non disabled people
- 93% disabled people don't use a wheelchair
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The Office for National Statistics estimate that 70,000 disability hate crimes occur every year.
Some changes that have a big impact...
1. Don't park in accessible parking pays if you don't have a blue badge.
Colleagues who have a blue badge will need access to these spaces as part of their reasonable adjustment plan. Please don’t park in them without a blue badge no matter how short a time you're stopping for.
2. Start Using Alt text.
A picture is worth a thousand words, but not as much if you can't see the image.
You can use alt text to add descriptions to your images in documents and on social media, see how to use alt text in the further reading section.
What is a reasonable adjustment?
Reasonable adjustments are changes an employer makes to remove or reduce a disadvantage related to someone's disability. They are specific to an individual person and may need to change over time
HR27, Reasonable Adjustments in the Workplace Training and Access to Work can support with this.
Types of Reasonable adjustments
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Flexible start and finish times
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Larger monitor
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Adapted office chair
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More frequent breaks
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Allowing staff to travel outside of rush hour
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Job carving
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Reduced case load / increased admin time
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Adjustments to the recruitment process
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Computer software.
What is ableism?
Ableism is discrimination and social prejudice against people with a disability. Ableism classifies those with a disability as inferior to non-disabled people. It includes assumptions, stereotypes, and physical barriers and placing different disabilities in a hierarchy. It is often unintentional, and most people are unaware of the impact of their words or actions
Ableism real life examples
- Playing with, using or altering equipment that someone else needs as a reasonable adjustment
- Using facilities that are for people with disabilities eg parking spaces or accessible toilets
- “But you don’t look disabled” said as a compliment
- “I'm just having an OCD moment” said by someone who does not have OCD
- Asking someone “what is wrong with you” when they use a walking stick some days due to flare-up
- Questioning whether a person’s disability is real “everyone seems to have a diagnosis or label nowadays”.
International Day of Person's with Disabilities
Clare Rose, Complaints Team
My name is Clare and I have dyslexia.
My dyslexia and other disabilities helps me to achieve in my job role by enhancing my empathy, I can utilise my communication and listening skills and use big picture thinking to spot patterns and trends. I am also creative and can problem solve.
International Day of Person's with Disabilities
David Parry, Later Life and Memory Team
My name is David and I am blind in my left eye and have musculoskeletal issues from an assault. I have dyslexia, which wasn't recognised until I was 40.
Having disabilities gives me an insight into some of the areas and difficulties that some of my service users deal with. They give me empathy and allow me to show service users that disability is a matter of perception and can be overcome with support and appropriate assistance.